Explain how a trial court operates. How does a trial court differ from an appellate court?

Question

?

Answer 1

A trial court is presided over by a judge, who issues a decision on the matter before the court. If the trial is a jury trial (many trials are held without juries), the jury will decide the outcome of factual disputes, and the judge will issue a judgment based on the jury's conclusion. During the trial, the attorney for each side introduces evidence (such as relevant documents, exhibits, and testimony of witnesses) in support of the client's position. Each attorney is given an opportunity to cross- examine witnesses for the opposing party and challenge evidence introduced by the opposing party.
The functions of a trial court differ from the functions of an appellate court, because appellate courts review cases decided by trial courts. Usually, appellate courts do not look at questions of fact but at questions of law. Only a judge, not a jury, can rule on questions of law. Appellate courts normally defer to a trial court's findings on questions of fact because the trial court judge and jury were in a better position to evaluate testimony by directly observing witnesses' gestures, demeanor, and nonverbal behavior during the trial. When a case is appealed, an appellate panel of three or more judges reviews the record (including the written transcript of the trial) of the case on appeal, and the record does not include these nonverbal elements. Generally, then, appellate courts look for errors of law rather than evaluating the trial court judge's or jury's conclusions on questions of fact.